There were several surprises on the opening weekend of the college football season. Miami didn’t just beat Florida. The Hurricanes dominated the Gators in the Swamp. Notre Dame also went on the road and scored a big win for its playoff hopes by taking down Texas A&M. USC and Lincoln Riley got a rare victory against an SEC team by defeating LSU in Las Vegas.
So what should we be looking for in Week 2? Which games will feature these surprises? Who could be an upset victim? History has shown these unlikely results are coming – even when they are most unexpected. But where will they take place?
That’s why the USA TODAY Sports college football staff is here. Scooby Axson, Jordan Mendoza, Paul Myerberg, Erick Smith, Eddie Timanus and Dan Wolken weigh in with their bold predictions for Week 1 of the college football season:
Colorado in for a rude awakening
Usually, what wins football games is what you do in the trenches and, in the fourth quarter, have some semblance of game management. Colorado failed both tests last week and still came out with a win against North Dakota State. It would behoove the Buffaloes to find a consistent running game this week against Nebraska and keep Shedeur Sanders from getting faceplanted every other play, or this game will be over by halftime. Nebraska is better equipped and has more talent and speed than when these teams met a year ago, and the Cornhuskers are poised for a season where they can at least sniff a bowl game. — Scooby Axson
Texas embarrasses Michigan
It’s obvious the Michigan Wolverines are far from the team that won a national championship in January, and it makes sense Texas heads into the highly-anticipated matchup in “The Big House” as favorites. But it won’t be an exciting contest to watch. Texas went into Alabama last season and made an emphatic statement with its victory then, and it’ll even bigger this time around. The Wolverine offense was shaky against Fresno State and the defense bailed them out. But the Michigan defense can only hold on for so long, as Quinn Ewers and company blow this game out of the water. If there’s any consolation for Michigan fans, at least they’ll get to see Arch Manning get some snaps in. — Jordan Mendoza
ON TAP: Breaking down Week 2 and the five biggest games to watch
EXPERT PICKS: Staff predictions for every Top 25 game in Week 2
Michigan gets defensive in defeat of Texas
Michigan nets two takeaways deep inside Texas territory and converts both into a pretty solid upset of the Longhorns. The way to do that seems to be slowing things down and winning the turnover battle, two factors the Wolverines used to big success under Jim Harbaugh. It’ll be hard to keep UT under wraps, but with the help of some key turnovers UM wins it 28-24. — Paul Myerberg
Clemson needs to get over Georgia hangover
We’ve seen the script before. Appalachian State enters famed college football stadium and exits with an unexpected victory. An upset of the Tigers in Death Valley wouldn’t be as big as when the Mountaineers shocked MIchigan in 2007. But it would be a significant victory that could put them in the playoff race if they can handle the rest of their business in the Sun Belt. Will it happen? Much will depend on how Clemson handles its humbling loss last Saturday. If they don’t take Appalachian State seriously and play with the requisite emotion then it likely will be a long day and could see them start 0-2. — Erick Smith
Jalen Milroe finally gets his South Florida chance
Remember Alabama QB Jalen Milroe’s game against South Florida last season? It’s a pretty good bet that he does, because he was watching it from the sidelines.
Milroe’s benching by coach Nick Saban after the loss to Texas got the point across to all parties. The vocal fans who were calling for change got the message when they saw the offense slog to an ugly 17-3 win against the Bulls, but Milroe likewise got the memo that he needed to eliminate some bad habits for the offense to thrive.
There’s a new coaching staff in Tuscaloosa, of course, but Milroe is still running the show, and his first impression in Kalen DeBoer’s system was quite positive as he accounted for five touchdowns in little more than a half against Western Kentucky. Now that he’ll finally get to take the field against USF, expect him to be ready to show the Bulls what they missed last time out. Look for the Tide to blow past the 17-point mark by intermission, with Milroe producing at least four more scores before taking another, much happier seat on the bench in the second half. — Eddie Timanus
Baylor pulls off upset in Utah
Utah is making its Big 12 debut at home against Baylor. The Utes were picked to win the league, while Baylor came in 12th in the preseason media poll. Utah is around a two-touchdown favorite to win. This should be easy, right? Wrong. I’m picking Baylor to win this one outright in Salt Lake City. The Bears are coming off a disappointing 3-9 season, and there’s no question Dave Aranda enters this season on the hot seat. As a result, Baylor made some key changes this year – including Aranda taking a much more active role in the defense and Jake Spavital running the offense. Baylor rolled in its opener over Tarleton State, 45-3, and its defense gave up just 186 yards. Sure, it was only an FCS team but this might be a year where Baylor is a lot better than we think. We’ll find out Saturday when they beat Utah. — Dan Wolken
